A Little Girl's Hero

Today is Memorial Day.  I am so very grateful for those that have given their lives for our freedom.  When I was a child my Dad was in the Marine Corps.  I remember him coming home from one of 3 tours in Vietnam and wishing he could stay forever.  When he left, I tried giving him a kiss for every day he'd be gone from me, and my Mom had to pry me from his neck as he left with tears in his eyes.
When I was older my Dad was stationed in Morocco and was able to take my Mom, my sister, and me with him.  It was a fascinating place for a young girl. This was one of my favorite times in my childhood because I was able to see my Dad almost every single day. I had short hair and could pass for a boy which was quite advantageous in a Muslim country.  My dad would take me on trips with him and his friend (whom I found out later was the King of the Berber tribe).  The Berber King was a very nice man in the eyes of a child.  However, as much as I enjoyed being with my Dad it wasn't hard to miss the lack of freedom women and girls had back then in Morocco.  My Mom took my sister and I to a rug factory where there were kids younger than I was and they were working from morning to night. Not all kids could go to school.

The poverty was almost unbearable to see. Even as a child my heart would break for the Moroccan kids who didn't have much.  While hunting with my Dad & the Berber King, we frequently were treated to meals by some of the locals.  They lived in mud huts with tin roofs. The cooked in mud ovens outside. The water was not clean. Yet, they fed us a feast.  Their hospitality was amazing.

Living in Morocco made me appreciate what I had in the U.S..  I am so grateful for the experience because it made me appreciate EVERYTHING I have. I know Morocco is a different, more advanced country now and I'm glad. I would love to go back and visit but I will always live in these great United States of America. Where we have a democracy, not a dictator. Where people can work hard and achieve the american dream. Where there is freedom of religion, the right to bear arms, freedom of speech, etc.  We have clean water, representatives in government, and military personnel willing to die to maintain our freedom. 

God bless America!

Moms Make Life an Adventure!

My mom will be 80 years old this month. She's a wonderful lady who has done a lot in her lifetime.  Everything is an adventure to her, good or bad. She never lets life get her down and she is always encouraging everyone around her to do something new and exciting. She knows how to laugh deeply and often. She doesn't let the little or big things get her down.  Even though my mom  lives in CA and I live in WY we are able to keep in touch.  I call my mom at least twice a week.  I call her about ordinary, mundane, everyday things, and she's the first one I want to talk to when something exciting or upsetting happens.  She's my mom and I love her.

Mother's Day is this Sunday.  If you are able to, make sure you let your mom know how much she means to you.  A homemade card, a big hug, or a simple telephone call will be appreciated I'm sure.  I sent my mom a Twine Gift Basket from Bare Body Soaps to let her know I'm thinking of her.  Of course that is one of the perks of being the owner.  :)  I happen to be a mom of 9 kids. One of my favorite Mother's Day gifts was when my then teenage kids made me breakfast and put wildflowers in a vase for the table.  It was great!

We at Bare Body Soaps appreciate all that moms do for their families so we encourage you to do something nice for your mom this Sunday. 



My Mom

Happy Mother's Day to all you moms out there.  :)

Earth Day

Earth Day in 2 Days!

It will be Earth Day on April 22, 2011.  I love God's wonderful creation, Earth, and I try to take care of it as best I can.  I recycle, reduce, and reuse.  I buy our family's clothes at the thrift store.  I recycle my newspapers.  I get my magazines via internet to save some trees.That's why I started to make soap in the first place.  I try to go as natural as I can by making my own cleaning products, laundry detergent, bar soap, toothpaste, etc.  Our family rarely eats processed foods.  We eat healthy, from scratch meals every day, and I grind my own grains to make our homemade bread.  We are putting in a new garden this year since we had to tear out our old one last year.  My kids are GREAT gardeners.  They learned from my wonderful friend who is a master gardener.  Good thing, since I've never been great at gardening.  That's the thing.  Just because you may not be good at something, doesn't mean you can't do it anyway.  For example, my purse was breaking and falling apart so my daughter sewed me a new one out of scrap materials.  She's just learning to sew but she did a wonderful job and I will treasure my drawstring bag (I mean purse) made out of jean material and scrap pink flowered material forever.  So go ahead, next time you need to throw something away, think about who else could use it or how you could recycle it.  Grow a garden, even if it only consists of herbs or just 1 zucchini plant.  Start small and expand later.  Re-think everything you buy to see if you can make it yourself. Take care of our wonderful earth a little bit at a time.

Black Bean Burgers on a Grass-Fed Beef Ranch?

Yesterday I went to my Ranch Mom friend's ranch to visit with her family and our mutual friend, Air Force Wife (and kids).  On my way I called to ask if I could bring anything for lunch and Ranch Mom suggested hamburger buns since we were eating black bean burgers for lunch.  I asked how many, and Ranch Mom said, "well, there will be 14 kids and 5 adults".  14 kids!!!!!  Wow!  Then I realized that 7 of them were mine.  :)  Good thing we were meeting at the ranch and not in my house.  I only have 1 acre of land for the little monsters, a.k.a. beautiful children, to play on.

Well, we all had a GREAT time.  Ranch Mom, Air Force Wife, and Soap Lady (me) didn't just sit around eating bon-bons and watching t.v. while the little ones ran around outside getting muddy shoes from stepping in the creek.  Oh no, that wouldn't be productive enough for us home schooling moms.  Well, not to let a quiet house go to waste, we made papaya shrimp salad, black bean burgers, homemade sauerkraut and homemade cortido.  Of course, while peeling and chopping what I thought was a papaya, I was informed that it was a mango.  Ooops!  So, we ate a tasty snack of mango as well.  Ranch Dad gave us a bit of a hard time for having black bean burgers on a grass-fed beef ranch, but it was all in good fun.

Unfortunately, the time for the Soap Lady (me) & her kids to go came too quickly.  Ranch Mom & Air Force Wife were planning on making homemade ketchup later in the day, but I would have to miss out.  As I was gathering up the kiddos, Ranch Dad hooked up the horse & cart and gave the kids a pleasant ride among the beautiful hills surrounding the ranch, before I had to rush home to make sure dinner was ready for my wonderful family!

Hello & Welcome!

Hello!  My name is Rosanne Muncy and this is the first time I have ever blogged.  I am the owner of Bare Body Soaps where "we care for what's bare".  Here at Bare Body Soaps we love to make handcrafted & natural soap.  I started this company because I wanted a natural soap for my family & friends to use, without any harsh synthetics or detergents.  I was inspired by beautiful Wyoming's clear, blue skies and its wide, open spaces. Our soaps are an affordable luxury for yourself or as a gift.

Well, hang in there with me as I enter the new world of blogging.  I'll try my best!